Most VCO chips out there are not intended for audio use, rather they are high frequency for things like radio tuners, and are not suitable for expo tuning in the 20Hz-20kHz range.

The chips from Curtis and SSM were created especially for synthesizers, so they are easy to use. I remember that I started getting interested in SDIY in the late 90s and these ICs had only just begun to become scarce. Nowadays they are really for repair people or those who own vintage synths which require them. Of course, if we want hundreds of thousands of custom analog chips we can have such things made again, but unfortunately the demand really isn't there.

The fact of it is that there are no prebuilt modules on a chip anymore. The closest thing is that there are still SSM and THAT VCA chips which can be used in synths - but they are not quite as simple as wiring up a CEM. Check out the Papareil VCA and Mankato VCF. I recall that Philip Gallo and Roman Sowa had made some SSM2164 modules. Also, people have been adapting Exar "function generator" ICs into nice VCOs. Not a "one chip solution" but quite nice. I recommend looking in the Thomas Henry forums for some info about these.

your ask is similar to : exist a replacement for elvis presley or bob marley?
Boh...there are others musicians but nothing compare to elvis presley.
some vco chips : xr8038-xr2206-xr2207-ne566 etc. etc.
but cem and ssm are invented for '80 synths now we are in 2009...the dsp era!

I recently got a free sample of the XR2209 - but it only outputs triangle and sawtooth waveforms, so it'll need some waveshapers built onto a board. Not a patch on the XR2206. I'll post again once I've made a circuit board. Specs suggest it runs from 0.01Hz to 1MHz, but it'll need an external tempco+expo converter as well.

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